23 Shots
by suzie2b
Summary: Hyenas are a bad thing.


**Disclaimer:** _ **The Rat Patrol**_ **is not my property. They come out to play sometimes, then I send them home.**

 **23 Shots**

 **By Suzie2b**

 **Germany's notorious Oberst Wolff, who was well known for his cruel tactics for making people talk, had wasted no time killing the winery's owner, his family, and all of the workers before turning it into a German occupied installation for his own use.**

 **Three American soldiers and their British counterpart were locked in a dark, dank room in the winery's cellars. They had gone two days with no food or water.**

 **The door opened and light suddenly flooded the room, blinding the four men. Three German soldiers entered and while one held them at gun point, the other two grabbed Tully. He struggled at first, but quickly found himself being handcuffed and looked at Troy. "I'll be okay, sarge."**

 **Troy nodded and watched as Tully was led out of the room. The door slammed closed and they heard the key turn in the lock.**

 **Hitch stood there in the dark and said, "There has to be a way out of here!"**

 **Troy agreed, "I'm open to any suggestions."**

 **#########################**

 **A half hour had passed before the door was opened again. They were expecting a bruised and battered Tully to be brought in, but a German just outside the door said, "Oberst Wolff will mit ihnen zu sprechen."**

 **Troy and Hitch looked at Moffitt, who translated, "Apparently Colonel Wolff wishes to have a talk with us."**

 **Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch were surrounded and led to an upstairs office. The sign on the door read** _ **Oberst Wolff**_ **. One of the soldiers knocked and upon hearing a voice command, "Komm herein!" he opened it. Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch were ushered inside by two of the four Germans. The Colonel stood at a window with his back to them.**

 **One of the Germans, a corporal, said, "Oberst Wolff, der Rest der Ratte Patrol ist hier."**

 **The Colonel slowly turned around and looked at the three men. "Danke, Unteroffizier. Sie können draußen warten."**

 **The corporal saluted and left the room with the other soldier.**

 **The colonel said, "Please, gentlemen, have a seat. We have things to discuss."**

 **Troy stood firm, hands on his hips. "Where's my private, colonel?"**

 **Wolff smiled slightly. "He is unharmed … at least for the moment. Come to the window and see for yourself."**

 **Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch circled the desk to the window that overlooked a courtyard below. There was a cage, approximately fifteen feet by fifteen feet, in the center of the courtyard. Inside the cage was Tully.**

 **Troy took a deep breath as his anger flared and faced the colonel. "What game are you playing at?"**

 **Wolff signaled to the soldiers in the courtyard and a smaller cage was wheeled into view. Inside were two spotted hyenas.**

 **Moffitt's frown turned to worry. "Troy … look!"**

 **He turned back to the window as the colonel said, "Now the rules are simple. You answer my questions … and I'll let your man live." He turned to Hitch. "I will start with you." Hitch turned to look at Colonel Wolff with an angry glare. "What can you tell me about an allied offensive that is reported to take place in a few days?"**

 **Without thinking, Hitch looked him straight in the eye and spat, "Hitchcock, Mark T., Private First Class, 14836285."**

 **Colonel Wolff laughed and turned back to the window. He gave another signal. Guns were trained on Tully as the door was opened. The second cage was pushed against it and opened. The two animals were prodded until they both jumped into the cage with Tully.**

" **What are you doing? You can't…"**

 **The colonel smiled. "Oh, but I can. My pets have not been fed since your arrival here. They are accustomed to being fed daily and are very hungry."**

 **#########################**

 **For Tully's part, he didn't panic. He watched the hyenas approach slowly. Their noses working overtime to take in his scent. Tully moved around the cage, step by step with the animals.**

 **Soon the hyenas were growling and showing their teeth. Then one let out a sound akin to a "laugh" that Tully had only heard in the distance at night while on sentry in the desert.**

 **Tully continued to circle the cage, keeping his back against the bars. His heart was pounding in his chest, but he never took his eyes off the animals. He whispered, "You don't want me. I'm nothin' but bone and gristle."**

 **Then one of them attacked. Tully's reaction was swift as he kicked the hyena under the chin. It yelped and shook its head. The second hyena charged and was kicked in the head as well. And then it happened.**

 **#########################**

 **As Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch watched, Tully was attacked by both hyenas at once. The two snarling animals had him down in a second. But Tully wasn't one to give up without an all-out battle. He managed to kick and even use his helmet as a weapon until they backed off. Tully's left hand and arm were bleeding, and the right leg of his pants had been ripped away from the knee down. He glanced at the bleeding bite marks in his shin.**

 **They saw Tully scramble to his feet and as the hyenas attacked again, he pulled himself up onto the bars of the cage. He tried to stay out of reach, but then one of the German guards hit his hands with the butt of his rifle. Tully fell and was again attacked.**

 **Colonel Wolff gave a signal. The guards started throwing chunks of raw meat into the cage. The hyenas were all over the easier "prey" and followed the trail back into the smaller cage. When it was pushed back, the door was closed and locked.**

 **Moffitt swung around angrily and said, "You can't just leave him there! He needs medical attention!"**

 **Wolff smiled. "Tell me what I want to know and he will see a doctor." Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch said nothing. "All right. You will stay here so you have a good view of your comrade. Think very hard on what you will tell me. Your private won't survive another attack from my pets." The colonel opened the door and stepped into the hallway. "Unteroffizier, Sie und einer ihrer Männer gehen auf und halten Sie ein Auge auf die Gefangenen. Die beiden anderen bleiben hier."**

 **The corporal saluted. "Ja, Oberst." He chose one of his men and went into the office while the other two stayed in the hall on either side of the door.**

 **Troy looked out at Tully. He was finally moving, but only enough to sit up and push himself back against the bars.**

 **#########################**

 **Hours passed. When the sun went down, lights came on in the courtyard. Now it was nearly midnight. Tully hadn't moved since he'd leaned against the bars. His arm and hand ached and he had been bitten multiple times. He closed his eyes and decided to just sit there and wait. Troy and the others were bound to come for him. He was sure of it.**

 **An arm pushed through the bars above Tully's shoulder and he felt a nudge. A quiet voice said, "Hier, trinken." Tully opened his eyes and saw a canteen. "Es ist Wasser."**

 **With a shaky hand Tully took the canteen. Then there was a surprised yelp behind him and he turned to see one German guard had the other on the ground and was threatening him with a rifle. Tully wasn't sure what was going on, but decided to move away from the bars. He slowly stood up and took a step back.**

 **The angry guard reached through the bars and tried to grab the canteen. "Gib mir die Kantine!"**

 **Tully was just out of his reach. He smiled humorlessly at the guard as he opened the canteen and took a drink. Then he shook it and said, "You want it. You come and get it."**

 **Being unable to take the water away from the prisoner had the German cursing as he stormed to the door of the cage and unlocked it. He held his rifle on Tully as he stepped inside. "Gib mir die Kantine!"**

 **Tully took another drink before he said, "Oh, is this what you want?"**

 **The guard stomped up to Tully and grabbed the canteen out of his hand. Tully took advantage and grabbed the barrel of the rifle, pulling the guard into a punch to the gut. He finished with an uppercut to the guard's chin and he fell to the ground unconscious. Tully picked up the rifle. He quickly looked around and saw the guard who had given him the water watching him, but he'd made no move to help his comrade. And then Tully disappeared into the darkness.**

 **#########################**

 **Hitch saw the beginning of the confrontation. "Sarge, come take a look."**

 **Troy and Moffitt joined Hitch at the window in time to see Tully goad the guard into the cage and then make his escape.**

 **Troy nodded. "It's time we get the heck out of here." He didn't look at Moffitt as he whispered, "Distract them."**

 **Moffitt walked up to one side of the corporal and said, "Ihre Gefangenen zu entkommen." The two guards gave him a confused look. "Oberst Wolff ist sehr verärgert mit den beiden von Ihnen."**

 **Troy quickly moved around to the other guard and put him in a choke hold. When the corporal turned, Moffitt did the same to him.**

 **After quietly locking the door and picking up the rifles, Troy and Moffitt joined Hitch. Troy opened the window and leaned out. He ducked back inside and said quietly, "Looks like we can make our way down from here."**

 **As they crawled out onto the roof, they heard the doorknob jiggle. As they ran, they could just hear Colonel Wolff yelling at the guards.**

 **When the colonel finally got into the office, he saw the two unconscious guards and the opened window. His prisoners were nowhere to be seen. Upon going to the open window, Colonel Wolff saw that the cage was empty except for a lone American Army helmet.**

 **#########################**

 **Tully ducked down in the darkness next to one of the buildings. Alarms started to go off. He knew where the jeeps were and started in that direction, but he quickly began to wonder why he wasn't seeing or hearing any Germans out looking for him.**

 **As Tully went from one hiding place to another, he heard a hyena "laugh" nearby. He peeked over the crate he was behind and saw the two animals just a few yards away. They were sniffing the air and growling. Tully looked at his wounded arm and knew they would find him.**

 **#########################**

 **Once Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch were on the ground, Troy said, "We have to find Tully."**

 **Hitch said, "If I know Tully, he's gonna head for the jeeps."**

" **Right. Stay low and keep your eyes open."**

 **Moffitt and Hitch followed Troy as they made their way towards the German motor pool. They hadn't gone too far when they heard a shot ring out. They spun around and saw the hyenas silhouetted in the darkness. One was on the ground and the other started towards them. Before Troy could raise the rifle to shoot, another shot echoed off the buildings and the animal dropped dead. When they looked around they saw Tully running in their direction.**

 **Moffitt looked him over. "How are you doing, Tully?"**

" **Don't feel a thing right now."**

 **Knowing it was the adrenaline, Moffitt nodded.**

 **Troy said, "Let's get out of here before they figure out the colonel's pets are dead."**

 **Troy and Moffitt followed their drivers to the motor pool and easily found the jeeps.**

 **#########################**

 **They escaped the German installation and sped off into the desert. They didn't stop until the sun was coming up.**

 **At a waterhole, Troy called for a halt. He knew that Tully's wounds needed to be attended to. "Hitch, keep a look out."**

 **He nodded. "Right, sarge." Then headed for a nearby vantage point.**

 **Tully was shaky as he got out of the jeep and Troy helped him sit on a blanket so he could lean against the front tire.**

 **Moffitt knelt down with a med kit and looked at Troy. "We're going to need plenty of water to get him cleaned up."**

 **Troy nodded and headed for the well.**

 **Moffitt looked at Tully's pale face as he gently worked to get him out of his torn shirt. "How're you feeling?"**

" **Kinda sick to my stomach."**

 **Moffitt prepared a morphine injection. "Much pain?"**

 **Tully nodded. "I hurt all over."**

 **Moffitt gave him the injection. "This should help."**

 **Troy arrived with a pail of water and got several small, clean towels from a rucksack in the jeep.**

 **Moffitt took one of the towels and dunked it in the water. "This is going to be uncomfortable, Tully, but we have to clean out the punctures."**

 **Tully nodded. "I promise not to take it personally."**

 **Troy slit Tully's remaining pant leg to expose the wounds on his left leg as Moffitt began to clean his injured left hand and arm. Thanks to exhaustion and the morphine, Tully slept through most of it.**

 **At the end, Troy and Moffitt applied a generous amount of alcohol before bandaging Tully's wounds.**

 **Troy stood up and looked at Moffitt. "We can stay here a while to let him rest."**

 **Moffitt stood and led him a distance away. He kept his voice low as he said, "I don't think that's a good idea, Troy. We need to get him medical treatment as soon as possible." Troy looked from him to Tully. "Hyenas tend to carry rabies."**

 **Troy snapped his head back to stare at Moffitt. "They weren't exhibiting any signs of rabies."**

 **Moffitt explained, "Hyenas are carriers of the disease. They don't develop symptoms. The sooner Tully starts receiving the vaccine the better."**

 **Troy winced. "That means injections in the abdomen."**

" **Twenty-three to be precise."**

 **Troy sighed. "Isn't there another way?"**

 **Moffitt shook his head. "Not without the animals that did the damage."**

" **I can take Hitch and go back…"**

" **It's been hours, Troy. They've no doubt disposed of the bodies by now."**

 **Troy looked at Tully. "Should we tell him?"**

 **Moffitt turned and looked at his sleeping friend. "Let's wait until we talk to the doctor. No point in his dwelling on what's going to happen all the way back to base."**

 **#########################**

 **Several hours later the Rat Patrol stopped in front of the base hospital. As Moffitt helped Tully out of the jeep, Troy said, "Hitch, go find Charley."**

" **On my way, Sarge."**

 **Hitch went to Charley's quarters and knocked. She opened the door and smiled. "Hi, Hitch." She looked at his solemn face, then up and down the hallway. The smile disappeared. "Where's Tully?"**

 **Hitch replied, "He's going to be fine, Charley. He's at the hospital now getting fixed up."**

 **Charley's eyes narrowed. "That is not a 'he's going to be fine' face. Take me to him."**

 **Hitch drove back to the hospital with Charley fidgeting anxiously in the passenger seat. As soon as the jeep stopped she was out and running for the door with Hitch right behind her.**

 **When Hitch spotted Troy and Moffitt, he took Charley's hand to stop her from running and led her to them.**

 **Charley gasped out, "Where is he?"**

 **Moffitt said, "He's being examined by a doctor. We're waiting for news."**

" **What happened?"**

 **Moffitt said, "I think we need to have a talk, Charley. Let's go over here."**

 **He led her and Hitch, because she wouldn't let go of his hand, to a quiet corner and explained what had happened at Colonel Wolff's installation. Her face paled and she struggled to catch her breath.**

 **Vicky and Troy appeared with a chair and had Charley sit down. Vicky knelt beside her and said, "Listen to me. I was just back there with Tully and Doctor Adams. The wounds are deep, but not life threatening."**

 **Charley squeezed Hitch's hand. "But … rabies?"**

 **Vicky nodded, "He'll have to go through the series of injections. You do know what that means, right?" Charley nodded silently. "All right. They're prepping him for surgery to thoroughly clean the bites … and he'll get the first injection then. Do you want to see him first?"**

 **Charley nodded. "Yes … please." She stood up and realized she was still clinging tightly to Hitch's hand. Charley released it and gave him a weak smile.**

 **As Charley walked away with Vicky, Troy noticed Hitch rubbing his hand. "You all right?"**

 **Hitch worked to get the circulation back into his fingers. "Boy, she's got one heck of a grip."**

 **#########################**

 **Twenty-three shots. One a day. And Charley was there for every one of them but the first. She helped Tully through the nausea and pain. Kept cool wet compresses on his fevered brow and sore abdomen. Doctor Adams kept Tully lightly sedated throughout the ordeal.**

 **Troy, Moffitt, and Hitch stopped by several times a day and took turns bringing Charley food, most of which she didn't eat. They tried to get her to go get some rest, assuring her that one of them would always be with Tully, but she refused to leave for anything but a quick shower. Day ten found her exhausted and Doctor Adams was no longer taking 'no' for an answer.**

 **He set a cot next to Tully's bunk. "All right, Charley. You need to get some rest. You're not going to do Tully any good if you make yourself sick." She looked from the doctor to the cot and back again. Doctor Adams held up a prepared injection and said, "If you don't lay down I'm going to sedate you."**

 **With a sigh Charley lowered herself onto the cot and took Tully's hand. She was asleep before the blanket settled over her.**

 **#########################**

 **Day nineteen. Tully was improving. His wounds were healing well. The fever and nausea were gone, although his abdomen would be sore for many days after the shots were finished.**

 **The last day. The last shot. Tully hissed with pain. Charley winced. But it was over. In a few more days, Tully would be out of the hospital.**

 **After Doctor Adams and Vicky walked away, Tully took Charley's hand and kissed her palm. "I want you to leave now."**

 **Charley looked at him tiredly. "What … why?"**

 **Tully smiled a little. "I'm sorry, sweetheart … but you look terrible."**

" **Oh…"**

" **You need to get some real sleep … in a real bed. I don't want to see you again until tomorrow."**

" **But…"**

 **Tully shook his head. "Nope. No argument. Sleep and food before you come back here."**

 **Finally Charley nodded. "Okay … but you'll send for me if you need anything."**

" **I promise."**

 **Charley leaned over and kissed him. "I love you and I'll see you after breakfast."**

 **Tully grinned. "Love you too."**

 **#########################**

 **Later that same day Hitch stopped by and was surprised to find Charley missing. "Hey Tully. How's it going?"**

 **Tully sighed. "It's goin'. Had my last shot this morning."**

 **Hitch nodded. "Yeah. I've been keeping count. Where's Charley?"**

" **I got her to go to her room for some sleep. Told her not to come back until tomorrow."**

" **How'd you manage that? We've been trying to get her out of here for weeks."**

 **Tully chuckled, then grimaced and held his stomach. "Don't make me laugh."**

 **Hitch smiled at his friend. "It's good to see you able to laugh again."**


End file.
